The Coffee House’s Post

This week, two coffee shops near my home have closed down. Here's why... For context, there are already 4 coffee shops locally, and they're all bursting at the seams with customers. There is plenty of custom for new places. Both coffee shops got their positioning all wrong. They designed the place they wanted. One was beautiful, the other very cool and unique...they just didn't think about their customer. This area of London is the most densely populated with young families. Neither of the establishments catered to young families, not with facilities, menus, service nor the decor (cream velvet + toddler = you can imagine). If they'd just gone out and spoken to 10-20 people on the high street, it could have been a different story for both businesses. Building something new is not about giving people exactly what (they think) they want, it IS crucial to understand how they think, what they care about, what is essential, what is a no-go and then carve out a unique position that still makes sense for the customer. I'm a huge ambassador for independent local businesses. If you're starting one, please just take this small step. Shout out a local business who's got it just right in the comments. #localbusiness #marketresearch

When Foxtrot closed doors earlier this year, what was not predicted was the frenzy of #RetailRealEstate operators pouncing on the opportunity to capture some prime #Retail frontage. In today's market, retail vacancy is sitting at a historic low, which is sub-5 percent, nationwide. So when there is any inkling of prime #RealEstate coming available, there is a "line out the door" to snag a piece of it, especially those spaces which are in dense neighborhoods which lend themselves towards retail operators like restaurants, entertainment venues and all types of retail concepts. The current market favors #Landlords and established operators, as landlords have a sea of potential tenants to choose from and established operators are able to provide the corporate guarantees, high rental rates and long-term leases which landlords are always seeking of a potential tenant.

This article offers a great perspective on the Brookfield Properties approach to developing our U.S. retail portfolio through periods of change. As our chief development officer Adam Tritt says, there can be a silver lining to transforming and investing in anchor boxes, offering mall owners the opportunity to curate the retail, dining, and other creative uses that will get today's shoppers to the mall. Highly recommend the read! #brookfieldpropertieslife #retaildevelopment

This article offers a great perspective on the Brookfield Properties approach to developing our U.S. retail portfolio through periods of change. As our chief development officer Adam Tritt says, there can be a silver lining to transforming and investing in anchor boxes, offering mall owners the opportunity to curate the retail, dining, and other creative uses that will get today's shoppers to the mall. Highly recommend the read! #brookfieldpropertieslife #retaildevelopment #thefuture

Fully refrigerated BWS…

Whole Foods to Open 42,024 SF Grocery Store in Boynton Beach Set to open on Dec. 10, the new store will serve as the anchor of Boynton Beach Marketplace, a 69,204-square-foot shopping center that Atlanta-based SJC Ventures is developing in South Florida’s Palm Beach County. Read more at https://lnkd.in/g-9qfSe7 #boyntonbeachrealestate #boyntonbeach #palmbeachcountyrealestate #palmbeachcounty

This article offers a great perspective on the Brookfield Properties approach to developing our U.S. retail portfolio through periods of change. As our chief development officer Adam Tritt says, there can be a silver lining to transforming and investing in anchor boxes, offering mall owners the opportunity to curate the retail, dining, and other creative uses that will get today's shoppers to the mall. Highly recommend the read! #brookfieldpropertieslife #retaildevelopment

This article makes me very happy! I talk a lot about the shift of the high street based on the demise of the department store, and as a former department store buyer, I couldn’t be more excited that independent department stores are focussing on more contemporary strategies to boost sales & to thrive & flourish: 🧒Consumer- centric engagement 🏪Experiential collaborations with brands ✅ Sustainable Visual Merchandising techniques 👗Brand curation with unique exclusivity 🧑🦰Personalisation within in-store services 💻Omni channel synergy - fulfilling online expectations Thanks Drapers for giving us some positivity in Retail to shout about!! #retailexperience #retailbrands #brandexperience

When you open a restaurant, you usually have to compete to rent the location. And most of the time, @Sides has been outbid… …but *won* the space anyway! 🌟 How? Well, let me explain. Since launching in brick-and-mortar just 7 months ago, we've entered some of the UK's biggest malls. Bluewater, Lakeside, Arndale and Merryhill with loads more to come. At @Sides Lakeside, for instance, we were going up against the main players in the fried chicken category. VC and PE-funded, they can afford to bid over the stated price and take an initial loss — something we can't afford to do. But still, the landlord chose Sides. Why? In short the soft power of the brand, giving the mall operators something new to talk about, while driving top of mind and footfall within the ever more coveted Gen z demographic. It doesn't matter that we can't compete on hard cash. The takeaway? Not everything can be counted on a balance sheet. Sometimes, value can be delivered through other means — and usually, that's a sign of a solid proposition 👍🍗

It's exciting to see that shopping malls see the potential in creators. Instead of renting out their real estate to the highest bidder, this shopping mall went for renting it out to the fast food chain of The Sideman. Why would they go for a lower rent price? Well because The Sideman drives traffic, which enables other shops to perform better. Better-performing stores will lead to more positive stories about the shopping mall, which will lead to the ability to increase the value (and rent) of the real estate. Kudos to them for seeing the long-term instead of making decisions on short-term thinking.